Engine-starter.



ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.18,-1912.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

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ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION IILED 13110.18, 1912.

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UNITED @TATES PATENT @FFTCE.

HARRY R. NULL AND WILLIAM B. HOLLINGSWORTH, OF \VILLIAIVISPORT, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNORS OF ONE-THIRD TO J. C. SMART, OF CLOUDERS- PORT, PENNSYLVANIA.

ENGINE-STARTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 17, 1914.

To all LU/t0? it may concern Be it known that. we, l-Linny 1t. NOLL and WILLIAM B. HoLLINoswon'rn, citizens of the United States, residing at Williamsport, in the county of Lycoming and State of Penn.- sylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Ei'igine-Starters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mechanical means for starting engines of the internal combustion type so as to avoid the risk incident to starting such engines by hand through the .instriunentality of the ordinary crank.

The present invention provides an engine starter embodying a ratchet wheel secured to the shaft of the engine, a motor cylinder, a piston arranged to operate in the motor cylinder and peculiar connections between the piston rod and ratchet wheel for operating the latter, said connections including means for automatically throwing the connections out of operative position when the piston has returned to the limit of its stroke upon the resetting of the parts.

The invention consists of the novel features, details of construction and combination of parts, which hereinafter will be more particularly set forth, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the appended claim.

Referring to the drawings, forming a part of the specification, Figure 1 is an elevation of an engine provided with starting mechanism embodying the invention, showing the relation of the parts when the piston has partly moved forward on the working stroke. Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 with the motor cylinder in section and showing the relation of the parts when the piston is at the limit of its return stroke. l ig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line ww of Fig. 1. Fig. at is a sectional detail of the three-way valve. Fig. 5 is a detail perspectire view of the pawl.

Referring to the drawing, indicates an internal combustion engine and 19 indicates its crank shaft upon which is secured a ratchet wheel 1. Two flat arms 2, 2, journaled on the hub of the ratchet wheel and connected together at their outer ends by bolts 12 and 7, and a pin 0 to form a yoke, constitute a carrier (Z, for a pawl S, which is mounted upon bolt 7 and biased toward the ratchet wheel by a spring 6, coiled about a bolt 7, and having one end bearing on the pawl and the other end connected to a pin b on the carrier. The pawl 8 has a lateral extension 0, projecting toward the crank case 34:, and upon the case is a stationary cam 5, adapted to be engaged by the projection on the pawl when the carrier is moved from the position shown in Fig. 1 to that shown in Fig. 2, the cam serving as a tripping device to move the pawl out of engagement with the ratchet teeth when the carrier is moved to its extreme upper position, and to permit the pawl to engage the ratchet teeth when the carrier is again moved downward.

The motor for operating the crank carrier to start the engine comprises a cylinder l l, pivoted at its rear end upon a pin 23 in a suitable bracket or support 2 1, a piston 17 movable within the cylinder but normally held in its rearmost position by helical springs 15 interposed between the piston and a cap 13 on the .l'orward end of the piston, and a piston rod -l: extending through a central guide opening .in the cap 123, the forward end of the rod extending between the plates of the pawl carrier and being connected to the pivot pin 9.

When applied to an automobile, the starter may be arranged to operate upon the engine shaft directly, as shown in the drawing, or upon the transmission shaft when the automobile and its parts are so arranged as to permit the s'artcr being applied to the latter shaft without dilliculty. The motor cylinder may be pivoted in dill'ercnt angular relations with respect to the shaft to which the ratchet wheel is applied. As shown in the drawing, however, it is suspended above the crank shaft at one side of the vertical plane passing through the axisof the shaft, and in this situation it is desirable to place at the side of the motor cylinder a spring 25, the function of which is to press the cylinder laterally and force the pawl carrier back far enough to insure holding the pawl against the trip and out of engagement with the ratchet wheel, when the carrier is in its upper or normal position. If the springs within the cylinder were made strong enough, these springs alone would serve the purpose, but, in that event it would be necessary to apply greater force to the piston to drive it- :lorward against the action of the internal springs. The spring is therefore desirable when the cylinder is so suspended that its forward end has a tendency to swing away from the line joining its pivotal axis and the axis of the shaft to which the ratchetwheel is applied, and with the assistance of this spring, the internal springs need not be any'stronger than is necessary to move the piston to the rear of the cylinder and raise the pawl carrier.

The motive fluid, preferably compressed air, for driving the motor piston forward, is admitted to the rear end of the cylinder, when desired, from a storage tank 47 connected by pipes 44 and all to the cylinder through a three-way valve 42, and the fluid is exhausted from the cylinder, when desired, through the pipes 4-1 and 4:8 and the threeway valve. The forward end of the cylinder may be connected by a flexible pipe 45 to the exhaust pipe 43, to form a vent, but this connection is not essential, and the pipe -l5 may be removed. The reservoir 47 may be replenished from a suitable source connected to the branch pipe 44, or from a pulsator 36, connected to one of the engine cylinders by a connection 37 and by a pipe 39 to the pipe 4L4.

The operation will be readily understood. To start the engine, the three-way valve is turned to admit air from the reservoir into the rear end of the motor cylinder, and the piston 17 is driven forward by the compressed air against the action of the internal springs 15. The pawl carrier is moved. downward by the piston rod and the pawl drops into engagement with the teeth on the ratchet wheel, and this wheel with the on gine shaft is thereby turned through at least a portion of a revolution. The threeway valve is then turned to release the air from the motor cylinder and the springs 15 and 25 return the piston and carrier to their normal positions. start after this first impulse, the operation is repeated until the engine starts properly. In case of back firing of the engine while the pawl is in engagement with the ratchet teeth, it will be readily understood that the reversal of the engine and ratchet wheel. will cause the pawl to move backward and by tripping out of engagement with the ratchet wheel, injury to the parts will be avoided After the engine has started properly, the pawl will be held out of engagement with the ratchet teeth by the trip 5, thus preventing noise and avoiding wear on the teeth and the pawl.

By making the pawl carrier in the form of a yoke, having its arms at opposite sides of the ratchet wheel, and connecting the piston rod to the carrier between said arms and If the engine does not in the plane of the ratchet wheel, there is no side or lateral thrust upon the carrier when the piston is driven forward. By curving the forward part 4 of the piston rod so that it will be substantially concentric with the ratchet wheel when the rod is in its outermost position, the point of connection of the rod with the carrier may be close to the periphery of the ratchet wheel and thus a greater angular throw of the pawl carrier with a shorter movement of the piston is possible than would be the case if the piston rod were straight. In the latter event, the piston being in the plane of the ratchet wheel, it would be impossible to obtain an equally great angular movement of the pawl carrier, even by connecting the piston rod to the carrier at a much greater radial distance from the axis of the shaft, which would be necessary in order that the rod might clear the wheel in the outermost position of the rod. The short piston movement and the short lateral swing of the cylinder, with a long angular movement of the carrier are desirable, particularly where the starter is placed in a restricted space, as when it is arranged beneath an automobile body.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new, is

The combination with an engine shaft,- of a ratchet wheel secured thereon, a pawl-can rier journaled upon the shaft, a pawl on said carrier adapted to engage the ratchet wheel, a cylinder pivotally supported at its rear end, a piston within the cylinder, a piston-rod connected to said piston and extending through the forward end of the cylinder and pivotally connected to said pawl-carrier, the portion of said rod external to the cylinder lying in the plane of the ratchet wheel and being curved to conform tothe circumference of said ratchet wheel. when the piston rod is projected, means for admitting fluid under pressure into the rear end of the cylinder to drive the piston forward, springs within the cylinder for moving the piston rearward, and a stop for tripping the pawl out of engagement with the ratchet wheel when the piston is moved rearward.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

HARRY R. NOLL. WILLIAM B. HOLLINGSWORTH. lVitnesses WARREN F. MYTINGER, HARRY W. G'OEI-IRIG. I

Copies 01 this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

